De Gaulle

"Lacouture is a journalist and a prolific biographer, and although this study is not new I think it still remains the best biography of De Gaulle in English. It is fair-minded and lively. He treats De Gaulle as a national hero, but at the same time points out the mixed record of his accomplishments and failures. Support Five Books Five Books interviews are expensive to produce. If you're enjoying this interview, please support us by donating a small amount . I picked this book because the Gaullist project has been a potent strain in attitudes towards America among the French right, and it survives to some extent to this day. President Sarkozy in some ways still buys into the Gaullist project, by which I mean that France is a global power with a special role in championing civilisation and an independent Europe – and that America has been the major obstacle to France’s aspirations. World I think that change really comes from the American side. The fall of France in 1940 marked a real break in American perceptions of France. That led to difficult relations between Franklin Roosevelt and De Gaulle, culminating in Roosevelt’s refusal to acknowledge De Gaulle’s place in creating a provisional government. Even Winston Churchill was far ahead of Roosevelt on this issue. There was a perception among American leaders that France was no longer a great power and that it should be treated as such, and this behaviour antagonised De Gaulle. There has been a conviction among French leaders ever since World War Two that the United States refuses to treat France as a true partner and expects it to be a follower. Needless to say this has generated a testy transatlantic relationship."